Featured Image Credit: NBC / Contributor / Getty
The biggest award ceremony of the year has once again wrapped, and like with any Oscars, most of the drama comes from behind-the-scenes drama rather than the actual awards themselves.
Hollywood's great and good piled into the Dolby Theater, with everyone from Leonardo DiCaprio to Jacob Elordi, Gwyneth Paltrow to Emma Stone attending the glitzy ceremony.
The big winners of the night include One Battle After Another alongside Shaun Penn and director Paul Thomas Anderson, Sinners' Michael B. Jordan, Hamnet's Jessie Buckley, and Weapons' Amy Madigan.
There was all the usual drama as Kylie Jenner was snubbed, Amazon's Melania documentary again came under fire, and the team behind KPop Demon Hunters was shooed off the stage. Many praised Conan O'Brien for his comedic hosting style after he returned from hosting 2025's 97th Academy Awards, although some found apparent Epstein island pedophile jokes and comments about Donald Trump's manhood distasteful.
Advert
O'Brien's two-time hosting gig puts him on a par with the likes of Jane Fonda and Chris Rock, meaning he's a way off Bob Hope's record of hosting 19 different Academy Awards. A last-minute sketch suggested that he could be named the 'permanent' host of the Oscars, but it turns out he's not the only one in the running.
Following on from previous chatter that Jimmy "MrBeast" Donaldson could run for President of the United States, there were jokes about him hosting the Oscars as a way to appeal to a younger demographic.
In an apt sketch poking fun at One Battle After Another, it opened with O'Brien relaxing after completing his hosting duties and being approached by someone from the Academy.
They say: "Great show, Conan. Just terrific...In fact, we liked it so much, we’ve decided to make you 'Oscars Host for Life'."
When Conan is escorted to Suite 55 (a nod to Anderson's movie), he enters a door that proudly displays his new role. As O'Brien tries to settle into his new life, his peace is interrupted when he's gassed (spoilers for One Battle After Another), and his body is thrown into an incinerator. Conan's plaque is then swapped out for one that says, "Mr. Beast: Host for Life'.
Although Donaldson doesn't appear physically, he's clearly a fan of the joke as he quickly shared it on X.
Some 96 years after the first Oscars, the Academy Awards will undoubtedly want to prove it's still down with the kids amid complaints that it's gone 'woke'.
this falloff needs to be studied pic.twitter.com/bA84k5LMMf
— reaction pics & vids (@reactionspedia) March 16, 2026
Even though the joke went over some people's heads, the parody is a nod to the Academy Awards' move to YouTube in 2029. After 50 years of being tethered to ABC, a new contract that runs until 2033 will see the ceremony air for free on Google's popular video-sharing site.
As Donaldson is the most-subbed creator on YouTube, it's a clever bit of early marketing. Unfortunately, not everyone was impressed.
Away from all the typical jokes about the last person to leave the Oscars gets $1 million, one angry viewer wrote: "New host of Oscars is f**kin youtuber…? That's terrible. NO.
Another added: "The Oscars went so well and then ended with an ominous Mr Beast mention at the end … wtf was that about."
Responding to Donaldson, a third complained: "I know you paid YouTube to pay the Oscars to put ur name in the live broadcast of the Oscars this year."
Sorry, Jimmy, you might have to stick to hosting Beast Games.
